Towing with Multivan

[Sunny43.5]

Some years back a friend of mine had the T5 dual cab purchased back by the dealer because it would not pull the rated weight from stop up any small incline without slipping the clutch , I would hope that you have better luck than he did towing .I felt bad as at the time I had given him a glowing review of that model and it ended up being a disaster .

[Guest001]

In Europe the down mass on the ball is specified as 5% of the towed mass. Hence my VW T5 MY11 has a rating of 2000Kg towed and 100Kg on the ball. (actually VW updated that to 2500Kg but didn't change the ball mass spec). This would imply a legal 4% on the ball, bit low for my liking. This is why European caravans eg. Adria tend to be light on the ball. I have a genuine VW bar and Hayman-Reese advise me that they can't do anything that would rate it higher. They are limited by the vehicle manufacturer rating. Seems that the only avenue is to have an automotive engineer examine and possibly re-rate the hitch. I am in the throes of getting an automotive engineer look at my T5 with that objective. Has anyone had experience in this area or tried to have their hitch rerated? There are two main issues, the ability of the actual towbar to carry the weight and the ability of the vehicle structure including suspension to take the weight.
I will post the result of my efforts for interest.
cheers

Good luck with this It is illegal in Aus to make ANY alteration to a towbar. EG I bought one with the D shackle connections underneath. I asked the seller to weld a piece on the top to make it easier He said "impossible" to do anything like that.

Likewise in the 90's Toyota Landcruisers had a towing limit of 2500kg. HR towbars that fitted were 3500KG but you couldn't legally tow that because of the manufacturers limit..
Same as with towball weights. States in Aus don't have limits on towball weight and all state that manufacturers limits apply.

Unless you upgrade suspension and chassis or body components I would think any engineer would be reluctant to alter it higher.
Insurance problems will rear their ugly head if anything should happen and it can be attributed to overweight ball weights.
Like bolts ripping out of car and letting van come free Yes have seen one do it when it sheared off a hitch and rolled back down a hill.
Put more weight on the back and your steering will be lighter and maybe dangerous in wet weather.
Where I live a guy had a big Coromal van on a Patrol and no distribution hitch and a very overweight ball weight. At times the front wheels were nearly off the ground..

Far better to buy a vehicle suited to what you want to do than overstress a totally inadequate one.

In Europe the vans are built totally different to Aussie vans and hence the lower ball weight due to the way the weight in the van is distributed..

Its not the hitch that is the problem, its the basic design of the vehicle as a unitary body usually cant support higher weights like a ladder chassis can.

Also just to clarify a point from a previous post Weight distribution bars DO NOT LOWER BALL WEIGHT.
The ball weight of any trailer is measured while disconnected from the car and whatever it is CANNOT BE ALTERED by a distribution hitch.

In fact I would suggest a hitch could put even more pressure onto the vehicle chassis and make things worse over an extended period.

Also adding weight to the rear of a van to lower it is the most dangerous thing you could do as it induces fishtailing in less than perfect suspension..

Also a van with a GTM of 2001 kg or more must have electric brakes on all wheels.

if under 2000kg it must have override brakes.

Some of the things I learned from several years of living in a Caravan and trying to stay legal when towing a 2850Kg van and a rig of 6400kg and 16 M overall.

[pjondeck]

250Kg on the ball and towed mass 2750 Kg T5 Multivan Tow Hitch upgrade.
I have just completed the upgrade of my tow hitch.
The upgrade was done by an approved automotive engineer. The upgrade involved fabricating plates that attach to the rear cross member just in front of the lateral tow bar member and provide vertical and lateral support . The threaded holes were already there to do this except for one that was added. The existing towbar mount has little vertical or lateral support, the mount being via two plates mounted on in line members and at least 400mm from the tow ball. No modification to the suspension or anything else was ever even suggested. The cost of the fabrication and fitting was $700 and the cost of the engineering design, load testing and comprehensive report was $850. ACT Motor Registry got in for their bit too charging $61 to test my headlights, brakes, you name it, everything but the towbar. (pri..s). So for $1611 it was not a cheap exercise but the T5 is such a good towing platform and such a utility vehicle for caravanning that for me it was worth the money and a lot cheaper than changing the vehicle.
Interesting stuff eh? Let me know if more info desired.
regards
PeterD

[Speedy]

Hi Peter, I am looking to buy a Tiguan to tow a caravan 1.5t loaded with a ball weight of 150kg, could I get the Engineers contact details please.
Thanks Scott.

[pjondeck]

Hi Scott
The Engineer's name is Ray Spence. He is on 0409360171. He can modify to Australian standards so it is acceptable in all states.
Contrary to Hillbilly's advice it IS legal to make engineering changes to a tow-bar, it can of course only be done by an engineer qualified and licenced to make those changes. On the multivan there is a beam across the back just behind the towbar which even had threaded bolt points that looked like they were meant for it. The Tiguan might be a whole different proposition and he would need to see it to know if it can be done. You probably wouldn't achieve much gain in towed mass but the down-mass on the ball is usually the issue with European vehicles. The problem for you might be that he is in the ACT and you would want to know before you make the purchase.
I'll keep an eye on the forum if you have any more questions that I might be able to help with.
Good luck
Peter

[Izabarack]

I have done a few Ks now, towing a van with a T5. HR towbar rated for 2500Kg. Van I have been towing is a nominal 16 ft, independent suspension with airbags. Van has the axle line set quite a long way back but the ball weight is easy to keep just under the 100 Kg by taking some care with load distribution. Static ball weight is about 92 Kg. Water tanks in the van are just either side of the axle line and the house batteries and fridge sit just either side of the axle line. I specifically bought a van with low standard ball weight and all the heavy stuff close to the axle line and very little mass towards the ends. Van has an ATM of 2200 Kg but I ensure it is never over 2000 Kg if it is going on the back of the T5. T5 is a 4 Motion and weighs a good 30% more than the van when I travel. I don't flog the setup around corners or down the road. I want to tow to WA next year and use the campervan for those side trips into the NPs and when parked up for a week or two.

Bottom line is that the van is easy to match up to the T5's towing limits and follows its lead without problems. I just work with what I have and don't need to worry about any upgrades to towing capacity.



Iza

[petenkaz]

Since my last post I have purchased a tandem off-road caravan, all up around 2 ton with a ball weight of about 180kg, so reasonably heavy beast. To park it in my carport I had to get a special hitch fabricated which raises the drawbar due to clearance issues. Doesn't work with my dual cab 4wd ute, so I thought I'd have a go with my kombi beach. Actually does the job quite admirably, and after towing in and out of the driveway, and with a slight incline I am actually pretty impressed with the capability. I think it does that little job well. I hope my clutch agrees though as there is some intricate manoeuvres required!

[budgie]

towing with multivan

Hi Scott
The Engineer's name is Ray Spence. He is on 0409360171. He can modify to Australian standards so it is acceptable in all states.
Contrary to Hillbilly's advice it IS legal to make engineering changes to a tow-bar, it can of course only be done by an engineer qualified and licenced to make those changes. On the multivan there is a beam across the back just behind the towbar which even had threaded bolt points that looked like they were meant for it. The Tiguan might be a whole different proposition and he would need to see it to know if it can be done. You probably wouldn't achieve much gain in towed mass but the down-mass on the ball is usually the issue with European vehicles. The problem for you might be that he is in the ACT and you would want to know before you make the purchase.
I'll keep an eye on the forum if you have any more questions that I might be able to help with.
Good luck
Peter

Peter, this is great info as we were questioning the same thing whilst looking at a new one. How does the multivan tow with that sort of weight on the back? and are you using the bigger engine?

Cheers Pete

[budgie]

Hi Scott
The Engineer's name is Ray Spence. He is on 0409360171. He can modify to Australian standards so it is acceptable in all states.
Contrary to Hillbilly's advice it IS legal to make engineering changes to a tow-bar, it can of course only be done by an engineer qualified and licenced to make those changes. On the multivan there is a beam across the back just behind the towbar which even had threaded bolt points that looked like they were meant for it. The Tiguan might be a whole different proposition and he would need to see it to know if it can be done. You probably wouldn't achieve much gain in towed mass but the down-mass on the ball is usually the issue with European vehicles. The problem for you might be that he is in the ACT and you would want to know before you make the purchase.
I'll keep an eye on the forum if you have any more questions that I might be able to help with.
Good luck
Peter

Peter, this is great info as we were questioning the same thing whilst looking at a new one. How does the multivan tow with that sort of weight on the back? and are you using the bigger engine?

Cheers Pete

[Pickle]

I'm real surprised and shocked that the T5 can only have a ball weight of 100kg.
My last car could carry 180kg on the ball weight and it was a soft-roader (Evoque) I actually bought the T5 to carry by bike (dirtbike) on the back of but now.....

[irsa76]

Looking at the spec for the 2018 Multivan shows it has a 2500kg tow rating now, still with 100kg ball weight. Will have to double check to make sure mine has the correct hitch fitted when I get it, not that I'd pull the full 2500kg it's nice to have that headroom when towing.

[aSimpleLife]

Just had to check my own specs and thought I'd post it - T5 2010 LWB 103kw 6spd manual;
Towing specs - towball weight 100kg - Brake:2000kg Unbrake:750kg
Hayman Reece towbar trailer only – part 02911R - 100kg towball - 2000kg

[TonyMax]

As we have a lift tailgate not barn doors when using the Hayman Reese weight distribution hitch we were unable to open the tailgate with the caravan attached.

I stopped in to Autobarn and bought a new tow hitch yesterday, this one can be fitted "up" or "down" unlike the genuine VW one which has strengthening ribs welded underneath so is unable to be fitted upside down.

Happy with the result, now we can open the tailgate to get our dogs in and out without having to remove the caravan (it was a PITA on the recent trip to Adelaide stopping and removing the caravan to toilet the dogs).

Apologies for the dodgy picture it was getting dark last night when I test fitted and test drove.

[Sherwy]

When I was a young fellah we did a hell of a lot of heavy towing the old man's trailer sailer, approx 2.5 t fully loaded, with mum, dad and 4 boys in the car. We would tow from Brisbane to Airlie beach and back again, did that twice in fact. Also Brisbane to Hervey Bay and back every September for at least 10 years. the old man's best mate had the exact same boat but towed with a Leyland P76, we had an old V8 Ford Fairlane and then changed to a Landcruiser. They both swore black and blue they would never be without their Hayman Reese weight distribution hitches (or sway bays as they were called back then). When the old man retired and decided to do a lap of the country towing a caravan the first thing he did after buying the van was fit another set of H.R. sway bars. They pretty much eliminate sway altogether and help keep plenty of weight on the front wheels of the tow vehicle. The windage off big semis going flat out in the other direction never bothered us but we sure did see plenty of other rigs getting all out of shape.

I've recently done a bit of heavyish towing with my T5..... About 2t ??? It was surprisingly good on the highway, took a little while to get wound up of course but under 90kph it was very safe. Over that it became a bit more marginal, you only needed to hit a few bumps and she would start to sway a little bit. Some HR sway bars would have been lovely. I think the vans are generally pretty good for towing because of the huge wheelbase, but the biggest problem I've always had is the tow bar is way to low which certainly does not help, especially with a dual axle trailer. I think ideally it needs to be a good 200mm higher over the standard towbars.

Cheers,

Sherwy.